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To make the very good cyder — whether for yourself , your kinsperson , and friend or for market — you first need a deep apprehension of the processes involve , and the nontextual matter and science behind them .
Fortunately , The New Cider Maker ’s Handbookis here to help . Within the handbook , award - winning cyder maker Claude Jolicoeur provides today ’s shaper with all the tool they need to produce high - quality cyder — starting with the basics .
In the excerpt below , Claude discusses his seven mantras : short guideline and principle that helped him as he learned to make cyder himself .
The chase is an excerption fromThe New Cider Maker ’s Handbookby Claude Jolicoeur . It has been conform for the web .
Cider Making Mantras
1. Seek Quality Cider.
In my notion , there is no real point in make our own cyder ( or any other drink , for that matter ) if we do n’t make a mathematical product of great tone . To make cider , we need to place time and energy . And the cider take to be really good to justify this natural process . If you prefer a ten - dollar feeding bottle of cyder , wine , or beer buy at the computer memory to the cider that you produce , you likely wo n’t be making cider for a foresightful time . On the other hand , if you put a bottleful of your own cyder on a board beside a bottle of genuine French Champagne and discover that your cyder is being drunk quicker than the Champagne because people suppose it taste better , then that is a really rewarding experience .
2. Good Cider Needs Great Apples.
To produce this first-class cider , well , you need great apple . The quality of the cider will never exceed that of the apple used to make it . So let ’s never forget this statement of furthermost importance : It is at the grove that the tone of the cider makes itself . This , because it is at the orchard that the orchard apple tree fill up with sugar and relish , with the help of sunshine , soil , and everything else that surrounds the tree — in other words , the terroir .
3. The Cider Makes Itself.
As cyder makers , we need to be modest . We do n’t really “ make ” the cyder . The cyder makes itself , and as such the term cyder Divine is not really appropriate . We will see afterward that the Malus pumila succus naturally hold all the required ingre- dients to transform itself into cyder . And to be accurate , cyder making is in fact a complex biochemical transformation that is performed by microorganisms called barm . The cider maker is but a pathfinder . What we do is to supply favourable circumstance that will permit the cider to evolve in the unspoilt possible surroundings to relent a high - calibre ware . And we should not forget that we ca n’t assure everything : cider is alert , and sometimes it does n’t go the means that we anticipate . Sometimes this variability will be for the ripe , sometimes for the worse . When this take place , though , it is important to essay to sympathize and learn why .
4. Good Cider Needs Time; Cider Makers Need Patience.
On the net discussion forums , founding father often ask why their cyder is not ready a few weeks after starting the fermentation summons . tyro are in the main impatient . We need to restate that Patience is the female parent of all virtues for a cyder God Almighty — at least for those who seek quality . Good cider needs time to make itself . It should not be hotfoot . So if you make your cyder in October and follow the guidelines set forth in this book , please do n’t expect to be drinking it by New Year ’s Day ( though you may safely contrive to enjoy it by the follow year ’s vacation time of year ) .
5. The KISS Principle.
KISS stands for“Keep it simple-minded , stunned . ”In addition to being a cider maker , I am also a mechanical engine driver , and KISS is an important conception in car purpose : one should always search the simplest result that will do the command task . ( Note that not all auto are design with this conception in mind , but that ’s another level . ) I have found with time that KISS also apply to cider making . It often happens that inexperient cyder Creator want to do too much on their first trial : chaptalize the juice ( adding loot , molasses , or honey ) ; expend other fruits to modify the flavor ; make acidity corrections ; add some tannin ; or even make a by nature sweet ( keeved ) cyder or provoke a malolactic fermentation . And then they come to the discussion assembly on the Internet and ask what they should do next because things do n’t seem to go that well . In my opinion , it is far better just to keep things bare , to ferment skilful - character , arrant juice without additive and practice well - proven technique — at least in the commencement . Once you have mastered the canonic cider - constitute practice , then it is time to stress new things and experimentation .
6. Clean Before Storing; Sanitize Before Using.
No piece of equipment , bottle , or anything else should be put into reposition until the next use without having first been well washed . This is particularly important for feeding bottle and carboy , as they are very easy to clean when just emptied but not so easy to pick once a deposit has dry out in them . All pieces of equipment need to be sanitized or disinfected just before use . One should not assume that because something has been salt away well houseclean , it may be used as is whenever it ’s need . Although not very glamourous , hygiene and cleanliness are of the furthest grandness in all cider - making opera- tions . The cyder room or cyder planetary house , as well as all the material , should always be perfectly clean . A groovy deal of the prison term we pass in cyder making is in fact spend clean , the cost we pay off to avoid cyder troubles .
7. Remember What You Did.
expert note - pickings and hardship are the keys to both good quality and advance over fourth dimension . By documenting what you do , you could closely supervise how things are going with your cider and make intervention , if necessary , at the respectable mo . Good banker’s bill also permit you to compare solvent from yr to year , from one blend to another . That way , when you make a cider that is peculiarly successful , you’re able to re- peat the same process , just as a scientist strives to attain “ consistent consequence . ” Conversely , when things do n’t go that well , good note are utilitarian to quash repeat the same mistakes .
Recommended Reads
Styles of cyder : The 4 Main Categories
Wild Apples , Real Cider , and the Complicated Art of Making a animation
The New Cider Maker’s Handbook
A Comprehensive Guide for Craft Producers
$ 44.95
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